Red Garters (1954)

A cowboy in white (Guy Mitchell) rides into town looking for the killer of his brother and immediately falls for a local girl (Pat Crowley). Directed by George Marshall (DESTRY RIDES AGAIN). A charming and affectionate musical spoof of westerns (and long before BLAZING SADDLES) and, stylistically, one of the most unusual movie musicals ever made. Shot in vibrant three strip Technicolor, Art and Set directors (Hal Pereira, Roland Anderson, Sam Comer, Ray Moyer) have the unique visual concept of setting a western town (obviously on a soundstage) with only the framework of the buildings so we can easily see inside and got Oscar nominated for their efforts. The sky is bright mustard yellow rather than blue and golden sand is on the streets. The costumes by Edith Head for the women and Yvonne Wood for the men are equally vibrant and correlated to the overall visual concept. Unfortunately, the songs (it is a musical) by Jay Livingston and Ray Evans, though they are effective in the film, are mostly unmemorable though Rosemary Clooney has one terrific torch song, Bad News and she and Guy Mitchell have a cute duet, Man And Woman. The choreography by Nick Castle is rousing and energetic. With Jack Carson, Gene Barry, Buddy Ebsen, Joanne Gilbert and Cass Daley.